You've Begun to Feel Like Home
by svvrin
Summary: Kurt and Blaine's journey through friendship to romance, retold and revamped.


A/N: Say hello to my first fic, hopefully you won't regret making its acquaintance. This'll be a chaptered fic based on Kurt & Blaine's interactions from canon. It'll be a bit different though, I'm adding my own spin on some events. Also, I don't own anything except the not-so-original plot.

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><p>To Blaine, Kurt is an enigma from the moment he first lays eyes on him.<p>

Blaine is completely taken by Kurt's pale skin, his perfectly styled hair, and his amazing eyes (a sea of blue, gray and green). He's also confused, he's never seen Kurt before and surely he'd notice someone as gorgeous as Kurt, at least in passing.

Kurt is standing on the staircase, looking flustered while boys dressed in pressed blazers and pleated pants rush past him. And before Blaine even realizes he's moving, he taps Kurt on the shoulder, "Are you new?" he asks with a smile, "You look a bit lost, would you like to get some coffee in the cafeteria, or I could show you around if you want?"

Kurt looks at Blaine with wide, thankful eyes. "Coffee sounds nice right now, actually."

They pick a table that's tucked into the corner of the cafeteria. There are a number of students around them but no one seems to look twice at Kurt or Blaine. Kurt's surprised that he hasn't been sent a sneer or gotten a shove in the hallway yet; seeing as it's a school full of boys, Kurt's been _expecting_ it.

Kurt looks awkward and conversation is stilted, Blaine berates himself for acting on impulse and even asking the boy in the first place. Nevertheless, Blaine wipes his hands on his pants in a nervous gesture and says, "I think I'll go get that coffee, now." Kurt responds with a quick nod.

When Blaine gets back, he notices Kurt is fixated on something, or someone across the room. Following his line of sight, Blaine realizes Kurt is staring unabashedly at two students on the opposite side of the cafeteria. The two boys are seated next to each other, huddled close and pressed together from hip to shoulder; Blaine smiles.

As he sets down the coffee cups and pulls out his chair, Kurt Kurt leans in and whispers, almost conspiratorially, "So is everyone at this school alright with, _gay people_?"

Blaine looks at Kurt with a funny expression, his eyebrows slant and his mouth quirks. In a teasing tone he says, "Well I should hope so. I mean I'm gay, and Kevin and Brad over there," he points over at the couple, "have never had any problems."

Kurt's eyes are bright with confusion and a bit of bitterness, his hands clutch his cup of coffee so forcefully, the tips of his fingers turn white from the pressure.  
>His voice is small and weak when he speaks, "That is <em>so<em> unfair._" _

"Unfair?"

"I-I mean...It's not fair that they can do that without so much as a stare, when I can't even walk hand-in-hand down the hall with the person I like." He sounds shaky and on the verge of crying, "I'm the only openly gay kid at my school, and it _sucks_." Kurt looks up to the ceiling, trying not to cry in front of Blaine. It wouldn't do any good for his face to become blotchy and red in front of the very handsome boy he met just minutes ago.

Blaine's mouth forms a small 'o' in surprise and his brows raise, "I-I'm sorry Kurt, I didn't know. I can't imagine how hard it is for you."

Kurt's red-rimmed eyes finally spill tears and Blaine really want to reach over and wipe each drop that marks Kurt's cheeks with a gentle swipe of his thumb. But he doesn't. Instead, Blaine sits in his seat across from Kurt, calm and quiet while his insides burn with _want _that's completely inappropriate, but he can't help it because wow, Kurt looks beautiful when he cries.

Kurt's tears lessen, but he talks. Occasionally a hiccough or a tear stutters his words, but he keeps talking. Kurt tells Blaine about McKinely. The taunts, sneers, and hurt are something familiar to Blaine. He knows what it's like to scream for help, but no one there to hear, no one there to _listen_.

Blaine hates that Kurt feels alone, hates that his friends don't seem to notice, hates that no one's ever there for Kurt. Most of all, he hates how similar Kurt's story sounds. Blaine went through it all too- the loneliness, the hatred- and it didn't end well for him. It's then Blaine vows never to let Kurt hurt as much as he did.

"When I was younger, I used to be teased a bit for liking musicals and singing, it was never really anything that could hurt me though- sticks and stones, right? But one night, after I asked the only other gay guy to the school dance," Blaine notices Kurt quirk his eyebrow a bit, "it was a Sadie Hawkins dance, so I thought, why not, you know? Why not try to have a bit of fun-"

Blaine takes a shuddering breath and looks down. He feel restless and anxious as the recollections from years past begin flooding in; his knees start bouncing and his fingers skit and tap around the edges of his cup.

Kurt eyebrows draw together and a worry line forms between them. He cuts Blaine off before he's able to finish his sentence, "Blaine, you don't have to tell me. I can already tell this isn't going to have a Cinderella ending."

They've only been talking for half an hour, still on their first cups of coffee, and already they've poured their hearts out to each other. It'd be a bit awkward, one would think, to divulge secrets and spill things they've never told even their closest friends to a relative stranger, but to Kurt and Blaine it feels completely _normal_. And it's insane. If both boys were being honest, they'd admit to feeling a strong connection to one another- a connection that made them want to talk about their struggles.

Blaine _needed_ to tell him about that night.

"No Kurt, I want to tell you. Just...just listen, alright?" Kurt nods, still apprehensive, and crosses his legs. "So yeah, I'd asked the only other out guy at my school, his name was Joseph, and it was going really great. No one really bothered us at the dance, and we got to enjoy being kids for a bit. It was after the dance when things got pretty bad."

"We were waiting for my brother, Cooper, to come pick us up- it was around 8 I think, so it was fairly dark...next thing I know, Joseph and I are being slammed into the ground by three older guys." He tries to keep the emotion out of his voice, remain distant from the memories as much as possible, but he can't help it when his words become laced with hate and hurt, so much hurt.

"All I remember is the way they wouldn't stop yelling, calling us awful names,"_ Fucking fags_ _take your queer somewhere else, we don't want your sick kind here_.

"Cooper found us half an hour later, I was unconscious so I don't actually remember that part. I ended up with a broken nose, a fractured wrist and three sprained fingers." He stares down at the table, it's been a while since he'd told anyone about Joseph. The last time he did, he was treated with pity- and Blaine didn't like it.

Blaine takes a quick breath and exhales. He looks up at Kurt, he's got his hands wrapped around his coffee, his fingers curling harshly into the styrofoam cup. His eyes, Blaine notices, aren't wet like he expects them to be, instead Kurt's eyes are _angry_. It's a reaction Blaine's never gotten before.

"So, Kurt, I did what I had to do, I came here." Blaine gestures vaguely to his surroundings, "Dalton's got a zero-tolerance policy, so if the bullying doesn't stop, you can enroll here. Dalton's kept me safe, so you'd be safe here too."

Blaine looks..._defeated. _There's a small smile playing at his lips, but it's forced and ugly and Kurt decides he hates the look on Blaine, it doesn't suit him.

But Kurt still only says, "As much as I'd love to enroll here, a zero-tolerance policy sounds like heaven, this is a **private **school. I know how steep tuition can be, and I just really don't want to burden my dad right now." Kurt shrugs. "Besides, I doubt I'd fit in very well." He looks down at his jacket that doesn't quite match the navy blue Dalton blazers with red piping, and his black combat boots that are nothing like the subdued, charcoal dress shoes students are required to wear.

Blaine's eyes gain some of their spark back, "Well next time don't forget your jacket," He lifts his cup of coffee to his lips, "you'll fit right in."

Kurt smiles a little, as if the fact that the only reason he came to Dalton was to spy on the Warblers wasn't offensive or uncalled for. Which, compared to what they were discussing, high school show choir competitions are immensely trivial.

Blaine continues in a soft voice, "But hey, I totally understand that Dalton isn't for everyone. Though you know Kurt, instead of running away," _like I did_, "you can stand up to the bullies."

Kurt cocks his head to the side, "How can I do that when every time I so much as breathe I'm slammed into lockers and getting slushies thrown in my face whenever a jock decides he wants to ruin another one of my outfits?" Kurt sounds frustrated, he fists his hands on the table, and his eyes hold a wet sheen of resentment.

"You can refuse to be the victim. Confront them." Blaine reaches out and places a hand on Kurt's balled up fists, they slowly unravel and Blaine wants to curl his hand into Kurt's and twine their fingers together. So he does. "Prejudice is just ignorance, Kurt."

Kurt's eyes drop to the tabletop, to their interlaced hands. He slowly pulls his hand free from Blaine's and begins tracing an unseen pattern on the table through the condensation left from his cup. He seems nervous, an emotion that looks alien on him, Blaine thinks.

Again, Blaine feels the strong urge to protect Kurt and shield him from his troubles. The thought of hauling Kurt up to his dorm room and locking him there seems more appealing by the minute- no one would harm Kurt as long as he was within the safe confines of Dalton. Blaine pushes the silly idea away though, his roommate would definitely not be okay with sharing their tiny space with another person, it was already crowded with just the two of them. Besides, his roommate wouldn't exactly be on board with the idea of holding someone hostage in their room.

Blaine pulls out his phone, "Why don't you give me your phone number and I'll give you mine. That way you can call me when you decide what you want to do, sound good?"

Kurt visibly draws himself together, takes a deep breath, and looks straight into Blaine's eyes, "I don't want to be alone anymore."

Blaine's eyebrows raise, not expecting such an admission to come out of Kurt's mouth. Sure Kurt had said that he dealt with being bullied on an almost daily basis, but to flat out say that he was tired of facing the bullies by himself, that he couldn't deal with the pain of having no one there to help him- that was something else.

Blaine takes Kurt's hands in his own again, this time not letting Kurt pull away, and he smiles, "You won't be alone. You'll have me."

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><p>Kurt's in school when he feels his phone vibrate from the pocket of his pants. He pulls out his phone and smiles at the screen, it's a text message from Blaine, and the only thing it reads is '<em>Courage.<em>'

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><p>The first time Blaine receives a call from Kurt, he's elated to hear the tinny voice of Katy Perry singing 'Teenage Dream' coming from his cell's speakers. He sets down his chemistry homework and picks up his phone, "Hey Kurt! What's up?"<p>

"Mm not much. I guess I just wanted to talk to you." Kurt sounds tired and he sighs. "Sorry if I interrupted something though...Oh god you're busy aren't you? I should probably call back later-"

"Whoa, Kurt calm down," Blaine cuts him off with a smile, he can practically see Kurt's blush over the phone, "I was just doing some chem and trust me, I'm glad you interrupted that."

"I should probably let you get back to your chemical conversions shouldn't I?" Kurt is nervous, he needs to tell someone what happened, and at this moment, Blaine's the best option.

"Uh no! You're way more fun than homework," Blaine tosses his textbook and paper on his nightstand and makes himself comfortable. He stretches out on his bed and lays on his tummy, his legs swinging back and forth over his head. "Besides, I wanna talk to you too; so tell me Kurt Hummel, what's new?"

Kurt takes a seat on the edge of his bed and plays with the fringe of his shirt. "Well, do you remember how you told me to confront my bullies?"

"Did you take my advice?"

Kurt bites his bottom lip and clenches his eyes shut. "Yeah, I did. And to be honest Blaine, it didn't go very well."

Blaine sits up, and a sick feeling settles at the bottom of his stomach. "What happened, Kurt?"

Kurt pauses and exhales his breath slowly through his lips, "He kissed me."

A horrible feeling overtakes Blaine, his tongue feels heavy and his insides begin churning. "Kissed you? What? Why? _Who_?"

"Karofsky." His voice cracks. "I followed him into the locker room and I-I didn't know he was going to do that Blaine," this time Blaine can hear the quiet sniffling, "I tried to stop him but, he was too strong and he wouldn't _get off."_

Blaine's angry. Angry at Karofsky for kissing Kurt, angry at Kurt's friends for not helping him, and angry at himself because he was the one who gave Kurt the brilliant advice that ended up with him getting hurt.

"I'm so sorry Kurt."_ I broke my promise_ "Please stop crying."

Kurt gives a broken chuckle. "I always seem to cry when I talk to you, Blaine. I should probably stop, shouldn't I?"

"What? Crying, or talking to me? Because you should definitely not stop talking to me...even if my advice isn't very good sometimes."

"Look Blaine, it's okay. It's not your fault. Neither of us knew Karofsky was a closet case with rage issues." Blaine hears Kurt shuffling around and he can hear the springs of his mattress creak over the phone line.

"Aren't I supposed to be the one comforting you?"

"Well yeah, one would think." Kurt teases in a light voice. A small smile forms on his lips and he's glad he called Blaine, even if he is a bit clueless about some things.

"I'm sorry."

Kurt rolls his eyes in a fond gesture. "You apologize too much, you know?"

"I'm sorr-"

"Blaine don't even finish that sentence," Kurt says with a giggle and Blaine congratulates himself for making Kurt smile again. "Besides, you've already done more than my friends at McKinely have."

Blaine begins to settle back down on his bed, he props his elbows on his knees and rests his chin in his palms, "Oh yeah? And what exactly have I done?"

"You've listened to me. You've actually been there for me. More than I can say for half the people in Glee, and I've known some of them for more than two years."

"Yeah we bonded pretty quick," Blaine agrees, "I'm glad we met."

"Me too." Blaine's pretty sure the smile he has on his face right now looks pretty creepy, but he can't help it.

"Hey Kurt," Blaine says, almost hesitantly, "what do you say I visit you during school tomorrow? We can both see what the deal with Karofsky is, and we'll do it in public so he won't pull any stunts, yeah?"

Kurt's glad they're talking over the phone because this way, Blaine can't see the terrified expression he has on his face. "If it didn't work the first time, what makes you think it'll work again?"

Blaine frowns and his lower lips sticks out, he didn't expect Kurt to reject his idea so quickly. "Well, this time it wouldn't just be you and we could do it with people around, so he wouldn't try to do anything." He lets his head fall back on his pillows and his curls bounce as he lands with a soft thud. "Courage, Kurt."

Kurt closes his eyes and breathes in deeply, "Right."

Blaine begins to play with a loose thread on his bedspread, and his lips spread into a wide grin. "I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

Kurt steels himself with resolve and responds, "Yeah. I'll see you tomorrow, Blaine."

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><p>AN: Feedback isn't necessary, but it's very much appreciated.


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